Horace: Odes Book I

252 Pages·2012·1.894 MB·English

by  Roland Mayer

HORACE
O D E S
BOOK I
edited by
ROLAND MAYER
ProfessorofClassics,King’sCollegeLondon
Cambridge University Press
978-0-521-85473-3 - Horace: Odes: Book I
Edited by Roland Mayer
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1.Horace–TranslationsintoEnglish. 2.Odes,Latin–TranslationsintoEnglish.
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CONTENTS
Preface pagevii
Listofabbreviations viii
1
Introduction
1 Lyricimpulseandlyricchallenge 1
2 Technicalchallengesoflyric 5
5
A. Metre
9
B. Linguisticregisterandstyle
10
C. Wordorderandplacement
3 ThearchitectureoftheOde 12
13
A. Linearprogression
13
B. Situationandresponse
15
C. ThepartsoftheOde
4 Thearrangementofthebook 17
5 Datesofcompositionandpublication 19
6 Transmissionofthetextandthetraditionofcomment 19
7 Interpretation:anote 20
21
Q.HORATIFLACCICARMINVMLIBERPRIMVS
51
Commentary
228
Bibliography
240
Indexes
v
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978-0-521-85473-3 - Horace: Odes: Book I
Edited by Roland Mayer
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© in this web service Cambridge University Press www.cambridge.org
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PREFACE
The date of the informal commissioning of this commentary is easy for me to
recover,since6July2004waswhentheHoratianSocietyhelditsannualdinnerin
theOldHallofLincoln’sInn,London.Italsohappenedthattheeditorialboard
ofthisserieshadmetearlierthatafternoon,anddecidedthatonetitletheseries
neededwasHorace’sfirstbookofodes.OurSociety’sthenPresident,TedKenney,
showed some art in snaring his commentator. Pre-dinner drinks on a summer
eveningundertheshadeofplanetrees,viewsoverperfectlawnstoflowerborders
andfinebrickbuildingsnaturallylowerone’sresistance,especiallywhenagood
dinnerwithgoodfriendsisinprospect.Itwasatsomepointduringtheseconvivial
proceedingsthatTedproposedthatIshouldundertakethepresentwork.Oiledas
Iwas,andabletodenyhimnothinganyway,Inaturallyassented.Onlythenext
daydidtheenormityofthatassentbecomeevident,butasReasonbegantototter
backtoherthrone,theenormitywasreducedtoamoremanageablescale.As
anundergraduateIhadreadNisbetandHubbard’sindispensablecommentary
shortly after its appearance, but in later years, using it as a university teacher,
IoftenwonderedwhatIcanhavemadeofit,sinceitwasclearlynotdesigned
with me in mind. The basic aim of the present commentary is to provide the
studentreaderwiththesortofinformationthatwillfacilitatetheconstrueofthe
text.Beyondthat,guidanceisprovidedforanappreciationofHorace’scraft,his
useoflanguage,metre,andhisconstructionofhispoems.Interpretationofeach
poemposedarathermoredifficultissue,aboutwhichsomethinghasbeensaid
attheendoftheIntroduction.
Overtheyearsassistancewithqueriesonmanymattershasbeencheerfully
andauthoritativelyprovidedbyfriendsandcolleagues.Myespecialthanksare
owed to E. L. Bowie, G. D’Alessio, A. Dyck, N. Holzberg (especially for his
bibliographicalinformation),J.North,D.W.Rathbone,M.L.West,W.Wootton,
and two MA groups who vetted portions of the commentary at various draft
stages.MrN.BryantKirklanddrewmyattentiontoHeaney’spoembasedon
Carm.24.
April2011 R.G.M.
vii
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ABBREVIATIONS
BoIndex Bo,D.,Q.HoratiFlacciOpera,vol.iiiDeHoratipoeticoeloquio
(Turin,1960)
BoLexicon Bo,D.,LexiconHoratianum,2vols.(Hildesheim1965–6)
CAH Bowman,A.K.,E.Champlin,andA.Lintott,eds.,The
Cambridgeancienthistory,2ndedn.VolumexTheAugustanempire,
43BC–AD69(Cambridge1995)
CIL CorpusinscriptionumLatinarum(Berlin1863–)
CLE Buecheler,F.andE.Lommatzsch,eds.,CarminaLatina
epigraphica(Leipzig1895–1926)
D–S Daremberg,C.,andE.Saglio,eds.,Dictionnairedesantiquit´es
grecquesetromainesd’apr`eslestextesetlesmonuments(Paris1877–1919)
E–J Ehrenberg,V.,andA.H.M.Jones,Documentsillustratingthereigns
ofAugustusandTiberius,2ndedn(Oxford1976)
EO Mariotti,S.,ed.,Orazio:Enciclopediaoraziana(Rome1996–8)
FLP Courtney,E.,ThefragmentaryLatinpoets,2ndedn(Oxford2003)
G–L Gildersleeve,B.L.,andG.Lodge,Gildersleeve’sLatingrammar,
3rdedn(London1895)
GEP Gerber,D.E.,ed.,trans.,Greekelegiacpoetry(Loebclassical
library258)(Cambridge,Mass.,andLondon1999)
GIP Gerber,D.E.,ed.,trans.,Greekiambicpoetry(Loebclassical
library259)(Cambridge,Mass.,andLondon1999)
GL Campbell,D.A.,ed.,trans.,Greeklyric(Loebclassicallibrary
142,143,461,476,144;5vols.)(Cambridge,Mass.,andLondon
1982–93)
GLK Keil,H.,ed.,GrammaticiLatini(Leipzig1857–80)
GP Gow,A.S.F.,andD.L.Page,eds.,TheGreekAnthologyii:The
GarlandofPhilip(Cambridge1968)
HE Gow,A.S.F.,andD.L.Page,eds.,TheGreekAnthologyi:
Hellenisticepigrams(Cambridge1968)
H–S Hofmann,J.B.,andA.Szantyr,LateinischeSyntaxundStilistik
(Munich1965)
K–H Kießling,A.andR.Heinze,Q.HoratiusFlaccusOdenundEpoden,
10thedn(Berlin1960)
K–S Ku¨hner,R.,andC.Stegmann,Ausfu¨hrlicheGrammatikder
lateinischenSprache,iiSatzlehre.2vols.5thednrev.byA.
Thierfelder(Hanover1976)
LIMC Lexiconiconographicummythologiaeclassicae(Zurich1981–97)
LTUR Steinby,E.M.,ed.,LexicontopographicumurbisRomae(Rome
1993–2000)
viii
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LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS ix
N–H Nisbet,R.G.M.andM.Hubbard,AcommentaryonHorace:Odes
Booki(Oxford1970)
N–H Nisbet,R.G.M.andM.Hubbard,AcommentaryonHorace:Odes
Bookii(Oxford1978)
NLS Woodcock,E.C.,AnewLatinsyntax(London1959,repr.1985)
NP Cancik,H.andH.Schneider,eds.,DerneuePauly:Enzyklopa¨die
derAntike(Stuttgart,1996–2003)(theEnglishedn,Brill’sNew
Pauly,maybeconsulted,butthetranslationssometimesdistort
theoriginal)
N–R Nisbet,R.G.M.andN.Rudd,AcommentaryonHorace:Odes
Bookiii(Oxford2004)
N–W Neue,F.,andC.Wagener,FormenlehrederlateinischenSprache,
3rdedn(Berlin1892–1905)
OCD Hornblower,S.,andA.Spawforth,eds.,TheOxfordclassical
dictionary,3rdednrev.(Oxford2003)
OLD Glare,P.etal.,eds.,OxfordLatindictionary(Oxford1968–82)
RE Pauly,A.,G.Wissowa,andW.Kroll,eds.,Real-Encyclopa¨dieder
classischenAltertumswissenschaft(Stuttgart1893–1980)
Roby Roby,H.J.,AgrammaroftheLatinlanguage,2vols.(London
1871–4)
Roscher Roscher,W.H.,ed.,Ausfu¨hrlichesLexicondergriechischenund
ro¨mischenMythologie(Leipzig1884–1937)
TLL ThesauruslinguaeLatinae(Stuttgart,Munich,andLeipzig1900–)
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INTRODUCTION
. LYRIC IMPULSE AND LYRIC CHALLENGE
medoctarumhederaepraemiafrontium
dismiscentsuperis,megelidumnemus
NympharumqueleuescumSatyrischori
secernuntpopulo,sinequetibias
EuterpecohibetnecPolyhymnia
Lesboumrefugittenderebarbiton.
These lines of Horace’s first and programmatic ode suggest to us at least one
reason why he tackled the challenge of composing lyric poems in Latin. His
earliestsuccesshadbeeninthenativeRomangenreofsatire.Thesubjectmatter
of satire was everyday life, and its characteristic tone was critical. The writer
of satire – he might not even regard himself as a poet (cf. S. ..–) – had
thereforetokeephisfeetontheground.Thelyricpoetontheotherhandescaped
theworldofeveryday(secernuntpopulo),heremovedhimselftoacoolgrove,far
awayfromtheheatofthetown,wherehejoinedthedancewithnimbleNymphs
andSatyrs.NymphsandSatyrsofcourseonlyexistinanimaginationnurtured
onliterarytradition(doctus),notinthesatirist’srealworld.Theimaginationof
the lyric poet, who now dons the persona of the uates (cf. .), is inspired by
Muses(EuterpeandPolyhymnia);thesatiristneedednosuchassistance,norwas
hedoctus,inthewaythatalyricpoetwas.Lyricisthuspresentedintheselinesas
somethingbothliberatinganddemanding.
The liberating power of lyric was generated above all by its diversity as
a genre. To a Roman reader and poet the Greek tradition of lyric song was
presentedasa‘canon’ofninepoets,whoserangeofthemesandtonesanswered
humanexperiencefarmorefullythantherestrictedscopeofRomansatire.On
transforminghimselfintoalyricuates,Horacecoulddealwithmorevariedissues
andsituations,whichallhaddifferentandappropriatetonesofvoiceforhimto
develop. This variety was part and parcel of the tradition of lyric composition
whichheappropriatedfromGreece.Greeklyricwaspolymorphous,thanksto
theserviceofsonginoccasionspublic(praise,lament,prayer)andprivate(love
andfriendship,thesymposium).ThelyrictraditionthuskeptHoracelinkedto
a realistic world in which men and women fall in love, enjoy a drink together
 Here and in the commentary poems within the first book are referred to by their
number,andwhereneededlinenumber.
 Fortheso-calledcanonoflyricpoetsseePfeiffer:–.Forahandyoverview
ofHorace’sexploitationofthecanonicalsingersseeG.Burzacchini,art.‘melica’inEO
–.
1
2 INTRODUCTION
(Carm.),needconsolingforthelossoflovedones(Carm.),praytothegods
(Carm. , , and ), or are moved either to celebrate congenial divinities in
hymns(Carm.,)ortosecurethefavourofapotentiallydangerousone(Carm.
).Suchsituationsarecommon,butlyrictreatmentinvitedgreaterrefinement
thanthesatires;inthesatires,forinstance,menhavedinnertogether,inthelyrics
theymeetforsymposia(Carm.and). Fantasytooisliberatedandrefined
by the lyric: in the fourth ode, Horace envisages a springtime in which Venus
dances beneath the moon with her retinue of Nymphs and Graces, engaging
figureswhohadnotappearedinLatinpoetrybeforeHorace.Satirecouldnot
riseaboveafartingPriapus(S...–).
Evenwheresatiresharedthemeswithlyric,suchasthecharmsofthecountry-
sideorsex,thelyrictreatmentwillappealmoretotheimaginationorfancy.This
is achieved for instance by the introduction of the religious or divine element,
which was excluded from the realistic genres of satire or invective. In Carm.
Horacedoesnothesitatetoclaimthathiscountryestateisunderthedirect
protection of Faunus, a figure who would have no place in an account of the
farminthesatires.Moreover,thegirlhewelcomesintothisprotectedlandscape,
Tyndaris,isamusician,whereasinsatireHorace’sgirlfriendsofchoicearehardly
socongenialandattractive(cf.S...–and.–).Lovecouldbeexplored
inlyricmoresympatheticallyandmorevariously(albeitidiosyncratically).
But the appropriation of lyric, if it was to prove relevant, presented the
poetwithparticularchallenges:HoracehadtoremodeltheAlcaeantraditionfor
Romanconditions.Theseconditionswerefundamentallydifferentfromthoseof
thesmaller,simpler,andpoorerworldoftheGreek.Horace’sworldwasaltogether
grander. His readers were masters of a vast territorial empire, and one of his
addressees,Iccius,isofftoconquerArabia(poem).TheRomans’privatelife
wasaltogethermoreluxurious,andsoitisimpossibletoimagineAlcaeuslisting
anythingcomparabletothegrandscruswhichwefindinpoem.Contemporary
politicalconditionsatRomewerefarmoremomentousthananythingAlcaeus
hadbeeninvolvedin.Grantedhehadbeenactiveinthepoliticallifeofhisown
community(cf.Lesbiociui.),hishistoricalactivitylookslikelittlemorethan
turf-warswhencomparedtotherecentcivilconflictsoftheRomans.ThusHorace
 MurrayisfundamentalonHorace’sadroitadaptationofsymposiasticsongto
Romansocialpractices.
 N–H :  observe with reference to the extravagance of the second ode that
Horace‘allowshimselfalicenceinanodethatwouldhavebeenimpossibleinaprosaic
epistle’.
 SeeKrasser:.
 Theoldbattleoverthe‘Pyrrha’odehighlightsHorace’sbewildering‘take’onerotics:
seeQuinn=Rudd:–andWest:–.
 ThisissueisdiscussedinmoredetailbyN–H:xii:‘thedifferencesbetweenthe
twopoetsareinfactmoreilluminatingthantheresemblances’andHubbard:–;
similarly,Wilkinson:speaksofthe‘smallamountofspirit’Horacederivedfromhis
models.